(Jackson, Miss.) – The Civil War Trust 2013 annual conference in Jackson, Miss., culminated with a dinner banquet Saturday night, during which Trust president James Lighthizer recognized excellence in the battlefield protection movement with its annual preservation awards.

“The individuals and organizations we honor this evening represent some of the greatest achievements in the preservation community,” Lighthizer said. “With their help, we remain steadfast in our mission to save America’s battlefields, while promoting awareness and greater appreciation for these pivotal places in our nation’s history.”

Over the years, the Trust has honored a wide variety of individuals and groups for their achievements in preserving endangered Civil War battlefields with its Preservation Awards. Previous winners include historians, scholars, National Park Service personnel, celebrities and even residential developers. Despite such disparate backgrounds, all have given unique and lasting contributions to historic preservation.

The 2013 Preservation Award winners recognized:

Carrington Williams Battlefield Preservationist of the Year:For his service to the American public through his long tenure as historian at Vicksburg National Military Park, Terrence Winschel received the Carrington Williams Battlefield Preservationist of the Year Award, named for the first chairman of the Civil War Trust. Winschel served VNMP for years after falling in love with the park during his first NPS posting as a 22-year-old seasonal ranger. He recently retired after serving at VNMP in various capacities continuously since 1978, and plans to spend his retirement giving tours, researching and writing.

State Leadership Award: The Trust awarded the State Leadership Award to Mark Christ, community outreach director for the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program. Christ is the author of “Civil War Arkansas 1863,” for which he also won the 2013 Booker Worthen Literary Prize from the Central Arkansas Library System. He also serves as a member of the Arkansas Sesquicentennial Commission and as chairman of the board of directors for the Arkansas Humanities Council.

National Park Service Preservationist of the Year Award: The award was presented to Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield park historian Connie Langum. A native of Neosho, Mo., Langum has spent 18 of the 22 years of her Park Service career at Wilson’s Creek, including additional duties as Midwest coordinator for the American Battlefield Protection Program. Additionally, she is a long-time volunteer for the Trust, regularly contributing her time and expertise to its preservation projects.

Civil War Discovery Trail Site of the Year Award: The Trust named Raymond Battlefield in Raymond, Miss., as the top destination on the Civil War Discovery Trail for 2013. The Battle of Raymond, fought on May 12, 1863, featured Maj. Gen. James McPherson against Confederate Brig. Gen. John Gregg and resulted in a Union victory. Raymond Battlefield was once listed on the Trust’s “Top Ten Endangered Civil War Battlefields,” but today stands a testament to the dedicated historians and preservationists across the country who have worked to protect its landscape and interpret its history.

The Civil War Trust is the largest nonprofit battlefield preservation organization in the United States. Its mission is to preserve our nation’s endangered Civil War battlefields and to promote appreciation of these hallowed grounds. To date, it has preserved more than 36,000 acres of battlefield land in 20 states, including more than 3,300 in Mississippi. Learn more at www.civilwar.org, the home of the Civil War sesquicentennial.